


A bad Gambit

by Unknownking



Category: Destiny (Video Games)
Genre: Canon Compliant, Canon-Typical Violence, Canonical Character Death, Character Death, Gambit (Destiny), Gen, Taken
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-10
Updated: 2020-11-10
Packaged: 2021-03-09 00:29:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,225
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27495748
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Unknownking/pseuds/Unknownking
Summary: Joxer thought it would be a simple job when he sighed up for a test run of the Drifter’s new game mode. The description was simple, teat the new armor effects and then report back once the game was over.Things go wrong fast and Joxer is left questioning just how much the corruption the Drifter is spreading through the Vanguard’s ranks. As well as his own worth as a Guardian.
Kudos: 1





	A bad Gambit

**Author's Note:**

> This is a canon event. Bungie release a few short lore pages on their Twitter account before they lunched season of the drifter. This one shot was inspired by those pages.
> 
> I’m not digging through two years worth of Twitter feed to find the exact pages so go watch my name is byf on YouTube. He has a video covering this topic. That’s also what I used for the base of this script.
> 
> Obviously this is set right before the season of the drifter.
> 
> Enjoy!

Joxer throw a few punch’s in a dark room lit only by the glow of the snakes that adorned his and the three others armors. He and his teammates were getting ready for the test run that they had signed up for. 

Joxer looked across his fireteam, trying to judge their skill based on their weapons. The Warlock was checking his sniper-rifle. Joxer saw a scout-rifle on his back, clearly he was planning to play range. The Hunter was spinning a hand-canon in her fingers, the exotic Thunder Lord was clearly visible on her back. He couldn’t think of a better weapon for her roll. The last was another Titan, his load-out was a sidearm and shotgun, he was going to be fighting at close range for 

They had been warned that this was going to be much more intense then regular Gambit. The enemies were far more powerful and that they would kill them if given the chance. Joxer had just scoffed at the warnings. When was it any different in the field? And besides he was an Invader. He almost never had to worry about the aliens shooting him. 

Each team member had a roll assigned by the Drifter. The Warlock was a Sentinel, he was to guard the bank and kill the other Invader. Joxer know form experience that this was a critical roll that most didn’t like to take.

The Reaper job was to kill enemies. Plane and simple but Joxer know that some people were just plan bad despite all there clams. He just hopped this one wouldn’t hold him back.

Last and probably least, the Collector. Joxer has no idea what the point of have a dedicated team member for picking up Motes was, but it was the Drifter’s game, if he said it was a roll then it was a roll, even if it turned Gambit into a three vs three experience. 

All eyes turned to wards the Drifter as he walked out from somewhere beyond their line of sight and onto his platform. “Alright, alright, alright. Let’s get this party started.” He said. “I’m going to explain the rule one more time, so listen up.” Joxer found himself tuning the Drifter out. He know what had changed. One round, bank one-hundred Motes, kill the Taken envoys, then shoot the Primeval. Joxer thought you’d have to be an idiot not to understand. 

As the Drifter started the round Joxer had one thought. “This will be easy.” Joxer smirked as he and his team charged at the Cabal waiting for them.

Joxer had been around for a long time, but in all his life he’d never seen anything like this. The Hunter was single-handedly clearing wave after wave of enemies. In the time it took him to look at a alien she had already put a bullet or two into it. And her Arc Light, her Arc Light was something else entirely. She was ripping through them like they were paper, and with the Collector was always hot on her heels they had open the portal In minutes. He made a note to get the Hunter on the team when this was over.

They felt the Invader before the Drifter warned them. Joxer couldn’t keep a smile off his face. If they wanted a fight they would get a fight. Spinning around he gripped his Luna’s Howl and began to look for the Invader. He couldn’t wait to see the look on there face when he killed them with a hand-canon! He going to enjo-. 

Bang!

The lifeless body of a hunter slid into view. A hole in their helmet. Looking up Joxer saw the Warlock reloading his sniper. How the hell did he find him that fast?! Joxer wanted to ask but they where behind. So he retuned to the fight. He kept an eye on the Warlock throughout the match and no matter where the Inverter appeared the Warlock was on top of him in seconds. Joxer know there and then that he would never, Ever, piss him off.

As Joxer jumped through the portal and landed on the enemy side, he was ready to cause some havoc! He saw three of the fireteam heading to bank their Motes. Good, he’d get plenty of drops when he was done. Suddenly a roar ripped through the air. The sky was torn apart and reality cowered as a massive Taken stepped onto the sand. It let out a roar that no earthly creature could make. Bullets struck the Taken but it didn’t care, grabbing one of the Guardians it proceeded to rip them in half. How had they summon their Primeval when their bank was locked? Then looking at the top of his hud he saw that they where twenty motes up! The Collector! He must have some kind of perk that gave him the ability to summon more powerful blockers! Joxer made a note to apologize to him later.

Joxer saw his chances and leaped into the fray. He quickly shoot the distracted Guardians and approached the bank. Instantly his armor sprung to life, Joxer could feel the Motes flowing through him and into his bank as easily as water flow through a net. It was exhilarating! Joxer know he had found his new favorite armor. 

His time expired and he was dropped back to his side. With the Motes he had pulled from the enemy side they were ready to summed their Primeval. Joxer smirked. This was one round, they had this in the bag.

Never had Joxer seen an entity like this Primeval. It was massive and a shield surrounded it casing their bullets bounced off it like water off a duck’s back. He saw his teammates running to kill some other Taken that had spawned elsewhere and he fallowed. After a quickly killing them a huge well of Light appeared and began empowered them. With this huge buff their bullets could finally damage the Primeval. “This isn’t so bad” Joxer thought to himself. He couldn’t wait to tell the Drifter how easy this was.

Things went south fast. The Collector had gone to debuff the Primeval and been crushed under it massive foot. Not uncommon, what was uncommon though was when their Ghost tried to resurrect them and was snatched out of the air. The Taken ogre had wasted no time blasting the Ghost with it’s eye-beam. The Guardians quickly tried to force the Taken to drop it but they where to late. A scream fallowed by a radiant burst of Light as it exploded. Time seemed to stop as shards of metal that once were it’s shell rained down and the horrible realization sunk in. 

He was dead.

He was dead and he wasn’t coming back.

The Warlock’s roar broke them from their trance. He had ripped his sword from the ground ending his well of radiance and leaped into the air, he rained deathly fire down onto the Primeval. It turned to face it’s new challenger with a roar of fury that no earthly creature could come close to matching. 

Fury was the only thing Taken were supposed understood but somehow, someway, this thing had learned. It guarded it’s face until the Warlock’s super drained and as he fell it grabbed him. Joxer couldn’t believe what he saw next. It reached in him. Into his Light and pulled his Ghost from it’s hiding place, then crushed it with one hand. The Ghost was killed instantly. But the Warlock wasn’t so lucky. It squeezed him with such strength that he was split in two. The Warlock’s screams were defining as he fell to the ground with a splat. 

They heard him continue to scream in pain as they both ran to get him. Shooting the Primeval with as much ammo as they could, but then the envoys respawned and they where knocked back when it stomped. Joxer saw the Taken looking down at the Warlock then it raised it foot, casting him into shadow. The three of them realize what was about to happen but where powerless to stop it. The Warlock’s scream was silenced as his bones where turned to dust and everything else became a smear on the Primeval’s foot.

Joxer and the Hunter yelled into their coms, telling the Drifter to get them out before anything else happed but he didn’t respond and having no choice they fought on.

They where close. The Primeval had been nearly killed. They could do it this faze. But a warning flash informing them that an Invader was here. Joxer spun looking for them hoping they could help but a rocket striking the Hunter before he could explain. Joxer watched in horror as the Primeval eye fixed on the Ghost who had appeared to help they Guardian. He stared has it realized to late what was about to happen. He could only watch helpless as it Primeval killed it with an intense beam of dark energy. 

Joxer wanted to yell at the invader. Wanted to scream at him for killing her. But he has no strength left and it wouldn’t change anything. That was when it hit him. He couldn’t do anything. For all his power he couldn’t do anything to help his team, years of service to the Vanguard, killing hundreds of enemies daily he had never gave much thought to death or lose, why would he? He had seen so much and the odds where always in his favor, he had the Light no matter how powerful the enemy was he could bend reality to his will and revive endlessly, but now? He was powerless against this monster, all his experience was nothing compared to such a unearthly creature that could captured and destroy the Light so easily. Was this what the hero of the red war felt when they went up against Dominus Ghaul? Against Oryx? This fear of death? Something so mundane to a Guardian that they had seen hundreds of times yet to be afraid of it? He had always considered himself to be their equal but now? Joxer didn’t want to know what kinds of demons they must have faced. 

A scream form his Ghost snapped him out of his thoughts but he was to late to dodge the massive hand of the Primeval. It grabbed him by the head and he screamed. It just stared at him for a second then it began to squeeze. Joxer struggled with all his might, even summoning his Hammer of dawn and throwing it with all his strength but it had no effect. Joxer closed his eyes as he felt his skull cave and he know death was coming, hopefully the Drifter would stop the Primeval before it killed his Ghost although he doubted it. Joxer prepped himself for the end.

Bang!

Instantly the Primeval dropped Joxer as it roared, it’s body began writing before it vanished in a burst of energy. Joxer turned and saw the Invader lowering his gun. “I’m sorr-“ he was cut off as he vanished like a taken as his timer ran out.

__________________________________________________________________________________

Joxer sat down on the sand, resting his head in his hands. How had thing come to this? Three Guardians dead and there was nothing he could do, he didn’t even know their names. Gambit Prime or whatever the Drifter called it was far to dangerous to continue. But what could he do? If he went to the Vanguard he would be held responsible for participating in an illegal activity. But if he didn’t then when this Gambit went live there would be even more casualties. It was a no-win situation!

Suddenly a foot step broke him from his thoughts. Raising his gun in a panic he found his sights on the man responsible for all this.

The Drifter stood, both hands raised in surrender, that winning smile planted on his face. “Relax brother. Fights over. Go to the Derelict while I clean up. After that, debrief an’ then you get paid.” The Drifter waited as Joxer processed what he had said, then slowly Joxer keyed a switch on his helmet and teleported to the ship. 

After quickly scanning the area the Drifter set to work. Removing the bank and weapon and sending them to the Derelict, then he started on the body’s. After taking both the Warlock and the Titan he turned to the Hunter and to his surprised to find that she was still breathing. The Hunter gasped as he approached. Her right leg was missing as well as a good chunk of her right side, her lung had collapsed and she was losing blood fast. As he approached their eyes meet and she let out a weak gasp. “Help........me...” He looked down at her with an unreadable expression. Then knelt down making sure that his knee was resting on her wind-pipe. “Sorry sister, but without a Ghost your as good as dead.” She struggled as he pulled his canon from it’s holster. “This is a mercy. And let’s be honest, covering you up if your alive is going to be a lot harder then just hiding a corpse.” With that he pressed the muzzle of his gun to her temple. She gave a small whimper and squeeze her eyes shut. 

Nobody heard the gun shot that ended her life.

**Author's Note:**

> If you’re reading this please leave a comment on how I can improve. Or anything to tell me you didn’t just click on this by mistake. It would make my day.
> 
> Thanks.


End file.
